Pregnancy brings with it many changes to the body, such as an increase in unwanted hair. Luckily, temporary solutions like shaving, waxing, threading, and plucking are generally safe during gestation.
Laser Hair Removal utilizes a beam of light to target and destroy individual hair follicles. The light passes through your skin and absorbs by melanin in your hair shafts, killing them off permanently.
Hormonal changes
As any pregnant woman knows, hormonal changes during gestation can make the skin more sensitive than usual, making laser treatments during gestation potentially dangerous for both mother and fetus. Therefore, pregnant women are advised not to undergo laser treatments, since there is no way of knowing their effect on fetal development. If pregnant women opt for laser treatment during gestation anyway, any areas which could come into contact with the fetus such as nipples should usually be avoided as much as possible.
Pregnancy puts extra stress on skin sensitivity, while hormonal changes can contribute to unwanted hair growth in places it shouldn’t. Hormones released by the placenta cause active follicles to become active again, leading to patchy dark skin around areas with unwanted hair growth and an increase in its rate. This delays reaching desired results from laser hair removal treatments and ultimately causes its success to be further delayed.
Hormonal changes can significantly diminish the efficacy of laser treatments. Follicles in their initial stage of growth make it challenging to target them with laser energy; over-treating can result in skin burns or discoloration.
Laser technicians usually recommend that pregnant women wait until after giving birth before starting laser hair removal treatments again. When speaking with her obstetrician about this matter, it will allow her to understand which areas of her body can safely undergo waxing, shaving or laser hair removal treatments and provide an accurate assessment as to when laser hair removal treatments should resume.
Electrolysis, another permanent hair removal method approved by the Food and Drug Administration, is another alternative to laser hair removal. Electrologists utilize thin wires inserted into hair follicles before sending an electric current through them to destroy hair roots. Unfortunately, however, some experts do not advise electrology treatments during pregnancy due to amniotic fluid acting as an electric conductor and potentially harming an unborn fetus.
Skin pigmentation
Women expecting children are often concerned about the safety of laser hair removal during pregnancy, as they want to get rid of unwanted hair without endangering their unborn baby. While there hasn’t been any clinical proof that laser treatments affect fetuses negatively, most medical practitioners advise against them as there’s no clinical proof they cause harm – fortunately there are numerous alternatives such as waxing, tweezing and shaving that they can turn to instead for hair removal during this period of gestation.
Hormonal changes during pregnancy can excite and stimulate pigment cells (melanocytes). This stimulation can result in changes to skin pigmentation such as darkening or hyperpigmentation and can lead to problems including burns. Furthermore, your immune system becomes compromised during gestation and any burns may take longer to heal – increasing the chance of infection and explaining why reputable laser hair removal clinics do not offer services to pregnant women.
Keep in mind that laser treatments only target active growth phases of hair follicles; hence it takes multiple sessions for best results. In addition, it is not advised to undergo laser hair removal while breastfeeding due to changes in melanin production in their bodies resulting in hyper or hypopigmentation, leading to undesirable outcomes such as hyper or hypopigmentation in their baby.
Laser hair removal during pregnancy should also be avoided due to its potential effect on fetus metabolism. Since fetuses rely heavily on their mother for nutrients, any disturbance of this process could cause malnutrition in their fetuses, possibly leading to miscarriage.
As previously stated, laser hair removal during pregnancy should be avoided as stretched and tender skin may be vulnerable to irritation. Furthermore, electrolysis (which involves inserting wires into each hair follicle) could transmit through amniotic fluid and cause miscarriage; for this reason it would be prudent for mother and baby alike to wait until post-delivery recovery has taken place and hormone levels have stabilized before attempting any hair removal procedures.
Risk of damage to the fetus
Pregnancy can bring great joy for most women, yet also many physical changes to their bodies – including excess hair growth. Unfortunately, unwanted hair may be hard to get rid of without resorting to shaving, waxing and depilatory creams; although laser hair removal might also be considered safe. Before scheduling sessions with laser treatments during pregnancy it is essential that all risks associated with treatment sessions are understood first.
Laser hair removal should not be performed during pregnancy due to concerns that it may harm the fetus. Lasers use thermal energy that destroys hair follicles, stopping new hair growth. While no direct harm has been proven from this practice, doctors would rather err on the side of caution.
Additionally, laser treatments do not use topical anesthetics that are considered safe during gestation; thus you will have to find another means of managing unwanted hair until after giving birth.
Note that laser hair removal should not be performed on breast and bikini areas during pregnancy due to increased levels of hormones that could stimulate hair growth in these sensitive regions.
At the forefront of your mind when considering laser hair removal during pregnancy is that there have been no long-term studies regarding its effects on the fetus, while risks related to laser hair removal may increase with previous pregnancies.
As a rule of thumb, temporary methods of hair removal should be utilized until after giving birth. Furthermore, waiting 6 months postpartum before starting laser treatments again will give your hormones time to return to normal while providing ample opportunity for you and your OB/GYN to discuss how best to manage unwanted hair growth.
Stress
Though no clinical data indicates laser hair removal has any negative impacts on unborn babies, most reputable clinics will take precautions and not treat pregnant women due to possible unknown and long-term consequences of treatment on the baby.
Pregnancy can bring on elevated hormones that cause hair growth changes throughout your body, especially around chest, breasts, and nipples. While pregnancy’s increase in body hair growth may be upsetting to some women, pregnant women must remember that once postpartum hormone levels return to normal after delivery their hair growth changes will reverse themselves.
Undergoing laser hair removal while pregnant presents risks of complications, specifically skin burns. This is due to changes in hormonal balance causing disruptions that could alter how skin heals; additionally, breastfeeding increases this risk as immunity levels decline and infection risks increase as immune systems weaken further.
Additionally, many topical anesthetics used during laser hair removal treatments are not considered safe during pregnancy; however there are plenty of alternative means of hair removal such as waxing, threading and shaving that may provide more suitable options.
Women expecting pregnancy should try to forgoing laser hair removal treatments altogether as the risks outweigh any benefits. If you become pregnant during your course of laser hair removal treatments, notify the clinic as soon as possible as they should be able to postpone these until after delivery of your baby.
Hopefully this article has provided you with a deeper understanding of why laser hair removal during pregnancy is not advised. New moms shouldn’t fret too much as their hormones will adjust and any extra hair growth experienced should disappear within six months after giving birth.
